608 
tSE TROPiOAL AGRICULTURIST. fiJ^ARCH 1, 1094. 
lirae,1he principal draw back being the longdistance 
the stream has to travel l)el\veeri tlie falls and your 
JiHtcheries solely ihouith the action and tfftctof 
the suu incr-ia>ins! ilie temperature of the WHt>r, 
on an averaf;e of at least 4 nr 5 degrees ( onietinies 
I iim told rising to 8 and 9 degrees), beiweeti the 
two places. Acute variaiion of the tempeiatu>e 
of the water being, asyouknuw, a special dlsiul- 
vantnee (and youi CIu'j's special disadvantage) iu 
hatching and breeding trout ova. I have taken, 
abont 12"30 p ni. on each occasion, 'he temperature 
of the water on three or four recent days (not for 
the purpose but general specimen days) and I 
found it as follows : — 
At the tails ... 49 degrees 
About J way between the falls 
and ilie hatchery ... 50 do. 
do i do to hatchery ... 52 do. 
do I do to do ... 6.3 do. 
Just aoove the hatchery ... 54 do. 
In the batcheiy on No 4 Pond ... 48 do. 
The temperature of the pond water is, however 
no criterion of the temperature of the stream water. 
It is always day and night degre^s lower than the 
stream ju-t above the hatcheiy, but this fact foima 
an objtct lesson of the comparative lowness of 
the temperature of the water in these altitudes 
carefully secured and protected fro.n the rays 
of the Nuwara Eliya sun. I am told, I think it 
is correct, that tbe rise in the temperature of 
your stream-water just above the hatchet ies on very 
hot-days and peiiids of the year (and dniing tbe 
hatching pet iods too) will increase i hese iiaures of 
mine towards sundown loeven-orat 6— <r6 degrees 
higher in teniperature. The a\erage tempernlure 
of water travelliig over the ova ot your haiehety 
(I am alluding alone to stream watei) it is difficu t 
exactly to calculate. It ought to be, and would 
be if niy hereafter suggestions ate follow ed, about 
52 degrees — by no ntenns an objectionable average 
temperatute for hatcbitig trout <>va unless extreme 
variations intervene. You will observe that the M-xt 
paragraphs of tliis etier ui ly go materially to lessen 
these variations; but before I ai)proach this sul j 'C*., 
let me say a word as to your wa er fiiteiing im- 
mfdiaie'y before the stieam water enters jfiur 
hatcheries. With pure spring-water, {iUeiirg for 
hatchingtiout-ova is never res'.i ted to— t ure spiing 
water being better without fiitrntion. Wiih brook 
water (only duiing iiicubati(Ji ) filiiaiion is to 
a limited extent essentia), I ut. not; to tlie extent 
you carry it. Your Vi'ater may be d-sciibtd an a 
mixluie bet ween spring and hro< k v>a!er anit loay 
not require fill! at'ou, but passing it ibiougbboiie 1 
gravel alone would be amply sutticieiil and you 
would be more successful wiili y«ar liatclieiies — 
you would get stronger fry with le-s Oitrfiti'H'. 
Oi course I am supposing jou use your siiei m- 
water, leaving your No 4 pond alone, unless your 
stream-water is from rain niucb di>co!otued, 
or possibly unless you are durii.g hi tching 
or incubation periods passing through days 
of extreme heat from the r^ys of the 
sun and which might raise the le.mperafute of 
the water over your tray, say to e4 oi 55 degree, 
Do not forget as an additional suggestion that all 
the authorities agree that occasional muddiness is 
not a disadvantage in brook-water for rearing trout 
fry after the hatching period has passed and do 
not forget unless you use stream water barring the 
exclusive positions I have referred to, you will 
always (and just the same with English ova as 
witk your owd} have extreme exceptional losses 
in hatching ova or breeding trout. You can- 
not succe>-sluily do eicher it you use poud or 
quasi pond, or with co ifiued water you 
may pussibly rear or hatch your ova, but 
your l(j.-tes will surely arise as yf>ur fiy come 
into fex'.steiice. Tliey ate weakly offspritig 
and youi' loss inevitibly then, or especially when 
they emerge from the egg, will be cousiderable. 
Strong awd steady trout are those whose rearing 
has been as nearly as possible assimilated to a 
natural pi oc dure and state As I say, I have ex- 
amirjed this stieam fiom the falls. You might 
it you liked and at very small ex|>eoae build a 
dam with central wooden sluice (you call it here . 
I think a wooden board), to contiol and take 
advantage of the second stream immediately 
divergiiig f.om and at the fails into the valley 
thereunder. The sluice wholly or partially let down 
would tiivta you the advantage of all or exactly wh.xt 
you want of the water from the falls and which 
I expect is ample both in summer and winter, 
I observe there are two or three places where 
your stream leaks badly into the valley below. 
'I tiis shiinld at (-jnee be Attended to. There is 
one place (if not two) where evidently the stream 
has been and is tapped and the water poached 
and Used by the dwellers in the valley bflow, 
and this should at once be stopped and the usual 
notice boards as to the obstruction of the water 
be set up. Again as reaaids tl;e stream you 
should we'l and carefully sow all the sides and 
arouijd the sides at the proper season of the year 
with rouah grass, nilu, nettle, fein and other 
seeds and thereby you may in some places almost 
entirely shut in tlie stream from the sun. The 
continued c ddness of the water as it runs down 
tliis stream almost entirely shut out from sua 
is remarkable. Many parts of tne stream wheie 
t'lis laiik vegetation is absent — and li.ey are 
easily rec'ignised — you should forthwith board t nd 
entirely clo-a in thrt strewm from the sun t: nd 
including 60 yards iininediiiiely above the hat;h- 
ery, and as to doing this I think there are two 
ways. What we call in England "scantling" 
could be used (you call it here the outside board- 
ing or strip of the tree) laid uaversely acioss 
the stream fixed in "he soil on both .sides and 
covered four or 5 or 6 inches with ciay and earth 
on the tree itself — say 6 inches in diameter — cut 
into couveuient lepgihs coul I be used l.xid and 
coveted with earth the same as tiie scantling. 
The scantling of couise would be the least ex- 
peiisive, but It would be a flimsy covering and 
would more constant repair and last but. a short 
peiiod, whereas the tree sugge.-tion would last for 
yt»! rs, wantiiifi' little or no repaii and be the most 
tfl'i cave and subsiantiiil. I have not the siij^h est 
heiiiatiou ic saying that you would get your 
water fioni your stream immediately above your 
hatcheiies if my suggestions were followed at 
almost the same temperattue, (certainly 
not more than one dei;ree liighei); this shows 
the temperaiuie of the falls and, aveingii g on the 
hotte-t day, I th.nk you will find not more 
than 5i) or 51 degrees. As I said b.-foie my 
sugi-estions really go to make y"ur fishery p'O- 
ductive ill income and breeding ind this fiom the 
ova of your own parent stock, kept near your 
piesent hatchery until you may aspire to larger 
and different premises. I annex you a rough 
sketch (not drawn to scale) which may help you 
better to understand my suggestions. Your 
stewpond should be finished where it now nearly 
half-made, the aide well nearly perpeadicula 
